Toy sail boats



Dec. 24, 1957 me; .r

B. L. HIRSCH EI'AL TOY SAIL BOATS Filed Deo. 26, 1956 INVENTORS BENJAMIN L. H/RSCH ATTO NEYS TOY SAIL BOATS' Benjamin L. Hirsch and Henry Hirsch, Toledo, Ohio Application December 26, 1956, Serial No. 630,552

4 Claims. (Cl. 46-93) This invention relates to toy boats of the type that are propelled by the action of agents such as camphor or certain soaps or detergents which when they touch the surface of Water weaken the cohesion forces among the molecules of water. A typical toy boat of this type, as heretofore known, consists of a ilat splinter of Wood trimmed to the approximate shape of a boat having a pointed prow and a blunt stern. A notch is cut into the stern and a small piece of gum camphor is squeezed into the notch. If such a toy boat is placed in a clean vessel of clear tap water it will glide along the surface of the water for a limited time until the small piece of gum camphor is exhausted or until the forces of molecular cohesion at the surface of an area of water surrounding the toy have been weakened to equilibrium. The propulsive effect resulting from thus unbalancing the forces of molecular cohesion at the surface of water, usually called surface tension, have heretofore been sufficient to propel only toys which were small in size and light in weight, e. g. of the order of one gram.

Surface tension causes the surface of the water in which a toy boat is floating to act somewhat like a stretched contractable membrane. When the surface tension is broken or weakened at any point the surface surrounding the weakened point pulls away in all directions. lf the weakened point is at the stern of a boat the surface tension moves the boat forwardly, and if the surface ten sion is weakened continuously at the stern of the boat, the boat continues to move forwardly.

Heretofore the only known practicable way `in which the eiciency of the propulsive effect could be improved was by making the boat smaller and lighter. Indeed acceptable performance required the boat to be so small and light that its interest as a toy replica of an actual boat was almost lost. Moreover :the tiny toy boats as heretofore constructed were flat bottomed surface skimmers without appreciable draft to retard their movements. They were incapable of responding to rudders or even of dragging rudders through water below the surface with sufficient speed to control their courses.

Camphor or other agent fed to a point in the surface of the water causes the surface to pull away in all directions, rearwardly, to the left and to the right as well as ahead. Only the forward component of the pull is utilized to propel the boat. The camphor or other agent that goes into solution below the surface is worse than wasted since it contaminates the water and relaxes the surface tension which is the source of the force that is utilized to propel the boat. For these reasons efciency of performance cannot be much improved by increasing the size of the piece of camphor that is in contact with the water.

We have discovered that if the tension weakening agent is stationed upon the top of and adjacent the edge of a n or ledge which is not submerged but the bottom of which is in contact with the water the surface of the water will rise upwardly over the edge of the tin with a aired lteres Patent lCC concave meniscus and contact the tension weakening agent. When thus contacted the agent is dissolved only at the surface and is not worse than wasted by going into solution beneath the surface where it has the deleterious eiect of contaminating the water.

In our copending application Serial No. 630,624 for patent on Toy Speed Boats we have described, illustrated and claimed means whereby so-called surface tension can be utilized effectively to propel toy boats having dimensions and Weights greatly exceeding dimensions and weights that have heretofore been practicable for toy boats utilizing surface tension for propulsion. In the toy sail boat described, illustrated and claimed in the instant application certain of such means for improving the performance of surface tension weakening agents are employed in the manner hereinafter explained. It is not an object of the instant invention to greatly increase the size of toy boats but rather to give a toy sail boat a realistic shape. Giving such a toy sail boat a realistic shape necessitates giving it sufficient weight to displace some water and float with the lower part of the hull below the water line.

It is an object of this invention to provide a toy sail boat capable of being propelled by disturbing the equilibrium of surface tension which toy sail boat is realistically shaped and floats in water with a part of its hull below the water line.

It is another object of the invention to provide a toy said boat having a storage pot to receive a supply of sur'- face tension weakening agent which storage pot in combination with the cover therefor functions also as a mounting for a simulated mast and sail.

It is a further object of the invention to provide components which can be molded in `single or multiple cavity molds and which components can be assembled by unskilled persons and without the use o f special tools to form a toy sail boat of the type mentioned above.

It is a more specific object to provide Va simulated mast, sail and rudder which together with la storage pot cover can be molded in one piece in a single or multiple cavity mold, the rudder portion being separable.

This specification and the accompanying drawings describe and illustrate a preferred embodiment of the invention but are not intended to impose limitations upon its scope.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. I is a plan view of a toy sail boat embodying the invention;

Fig. Il is a side elevation thereof;

Fig. Ill is a transverse sectional view taken substantially on the line lll-lll of Fig. I; and

Fig. IV is a .Side elevational View of a storage pot cover with a simulated mast, sail and rudder molded integrally therewith.

The toy boat has a hull l with a point prow 2 and a flat transom 3 at its stern. Located substantially amidships in the hull l and molded integrally therewith is a circular storage pot lwhich is capable of containing a supply of a surface tension weakening agent. Projecting from the transom 3 is a ledge 5. The displacement and trim of the toy boat are such that when it is floating in water the ledge 5 touches the surface of the water but is not submerged.

As indicated in Fig. IV a circular storage pot cover 6 and a simulated mast 7, sail 8 and rudder 9 are molded in one piece. When these parts are to be assembled with the hull, the rudder 9 is snipped from the top of the mast 7 and the stem 10 of the rudder is pushed tightly into a hole that is molded in the bottom of the hull 1 adjacent the stern. The storage pot cover 6 tits snugly within the top of the circular storage pot 4 and has a circular flange 3 11 which extends over the edge of the pot. Pushing the cover 6 into the top of the storage pot 4 mounts the mast and sail. The storage pot 4 and the flange 11 both are made circular so that by turning the cover the sail 8 can be set at any desired angular orientation.

A supply of any suitable surface tension weakening agent can be kept in the storage pot 4, the cover 6 of which is water tight. When it is desired to activate the toy a child or other operator may remove a bit of the agent from the storage pot with a toothpick or the point of a nail le and put it into the corner between the upper side of the ledge and the transom 3. When the toy sail boat then is placed in the water, forces of adhesion (i. e. such forces as cause water to rise in capillary tubes) cause the surface of the water to rise over the edge of the ledge 5 so that the agent will come into contact with the surface of the water that extends in a thin film over the edge of the ledge 5. The extension-of the ledge under the bit of agent prevents the agent 'from being wasted by being dissolved downwardly. The surface movement resulting from the release of tension extends over the entire area of the water in the tub or pan in which the toy sail boat is oating, the amount of movement at any particular place in the area varying with the distance of that particular place from the spot where the agent goes into solution. The movement continues only while the agent is actively going into solution. When the supply of fresh water in contact with the undissolved part of the agent is exhausted the surface movement ceases.

Camphor and menthol and some detergents are examples of propellants that can be kept in the storage pot 4 and used with the above described toy. The propellant preferably is a paste at ordinary temperatures. Either camphor or menthol can be made into a paste by adding a small proportion of ethyl alcohol. Or they can be blended in the ratio of nine grams of camphor to one gram of menthol. In such case the blend is a paste even though no solvent is added.

The instant invention makes practicable the provision at very low cost of a toy sail boat having a water tight storage pot for propellant and having a hull of realistic shape which, when equipped with sail and rudder, iloats and moves realistically.

The invention is susceptible of modification within the spirit and scope of the subjoined claims.

We claim: n

1. A toy sail boat comprising, in combination, a rst kit element molded in one piece and consisting of a hollow hull having a pointed prow and a flat transom at its stern, a ledge projecting rearwardly from said transom, a circular storage pot within said hollow hull, and a second kit element molded in one piece and consisting of a circular cover for said storage pot and a simulated mast and sail rising from said cover whereby placing said cover on said storage pot assembles said kit elements into said toy sail boat by mounting said simulated mast and 4 sail upon said hull and whereby turning said circular cover on said circular storage pot changes the angular orientation of said sail, the displacement and trim of said toy boat when iioating in water being such that said ledge touches the surface of the water but is not submerged.

2. A toy sail boat comprising, in combination, a first kit element molded in one piece and consisting of a hollow hull having a pointed prow and a blunt stern, a ledge projecting rearwardly from said stern, and a second kit element molded in one piece and consisting of a circular storage pot within said hollow hull, a circular cover for said storage pot and a simulated mast and sail rising from said cover whereby placing said cover on said storage pot assembles said kit elements into said toy boat by mounting said simulated mast and sail upon said hull and whereby turning said circular cover on said circular storage pot changes the angular orientation of said sail, the displacement and trim of said toy boat when floating in water being such that said ledge touches the surface of the water but is not submerged.

3. A toy sail boat comprising, in combination, a first kit element molded in one piece and consisting of a hollow hull, and a second kit element molded in one piece and consisting of a circular storage pot within said hollow hull, and a second kit element consisting of a circular cover for said storage pot and a simulated mast and sail rising from said cover and molded in one piece therewith, whereby placing said cover on said storage pot assembles said kit elements into said toy sail boat by mounting said simulated mast and sail upon said hull and whereby turning said circular cover on said circular storage pot changes the angular orientation of said sail.

4. A toy sail boat comprising, in combination, a first kit element molded in one piece and consisting of a molded hull and a storage pot integral with said hull, and a second kit element molded in one piece and consisting of a molded cover for said storage pot and a simulated mast and sail integral with and rising from said cover, whereby placing said cover on said pot assembles said kit elements into said toy sail boat by mounting said simulated mast and sail upon said hull.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 439,313 Uebelacker Oct. 28, 1890 641,321 Perkins Jan. 16, 1900 2,439,649 Cohn Apr. 13, 1948 2,628,451 Goldfarb Feb. 17, 1953 2,680,921 Gowland June 15, 1954 2,785,505 Tomak et al Mar. 19, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 381,372 Great Britain Oct. 6, 1932 585,015 Great Britain Ian. 28, 1947 968,624 France Apr. 26, 1950 

